So today I read about this innovative new company, BookSwim. “Stop buying books when you can borrow new releases and classics,” they say. Sorta like NetFlix for books. You submit a list of books you’d like to read. Then the books arrive at your door. You read them, send them back, and get more books.

Doesn’t this sound a lot like . . . well, like the public library? Where you don’t have to pay $20 a month and you can borrow more than three books at a time?

With studies showing that one in four Americans didn’t read a book last year, I am reluctant to criticize BookSwim. But maybe those subscribers should just get a library card.